102 



JOURNAL OF HORTICULTURE AND COTTAGE GARDENER. 



[ August 7, 1866. 



tarine, a sort highly esteemed, lias produced from seed a Peach, 

 rather small, hut of the most delicious Nectarine-like flavour. 

 Apricots raised from the stones of trees grown in orchard- 

 houses have not given, and cannot ha expected to give, the im- 

 mense variety that Peaches and Nectarines produce ; still, out 

 of some scores of seedlings no two can he found exactly alike. 

 The only beneficial variation that can he hoped for is in the 

 time of ripening, so as to havo varieties earlier and later than 

 we have at present ; for no Apricot can he of much higher ex- 

 cellence than the variety known as the Peach Apricot. 



Some progress has, however, been made ; a seedling tree 

 from the Red Masculine, ono of the oldest and earliest va- 

 rieties known, has given fruit larger and equally early, and a 

 seedling tree from that curious, delicate-growing small Apricot, 

 the Musch Musch,, lias given fruit much larger than its parent, 

 and so full of delicious fragrant juice as to be, if possible, more 

 grateful than the Peach Apricot. The Saint Ambroise, a va- 

 riety rather early, has produced a seedling, the fruit on which 

 ripened fully a monlh later than any other kind ; and, to con- 

 clude, the Large Red or Gros Rouge has given a seedling tree, 

 the fruit of which ripened a full month before that prodnced 

 by the parent tree. There is, therefore, some hope that in time 

 a new race of Apricots may be produced, differing in quality 

 and season from those at present under cultivation. 



It will, I think, be seen by those who venture to read this 

 paper, that my original and rather eccentric idea — that old va- 

 rieties of fruits would reproduce themselves in an improved 

 form if successive generations were raised from seed — has, to a 

 great extent, been realised. My prevailing feeling is that of 

 surprise that European, and more particularly English cul- 

 tivators, have suffered many ages to pass without carrying out 

 that which I have attempted ; the idea seems to me so simple, 

 and of such great interest. If all that I have done had been 

 attempted a century ago, what progress would havo been made 

 in fruit culture ! 1 ought, perhaps, to state, that in this paper, 

 fearful of fatiguing the reader, I have given but a mere abstract 

 of my experiments. A time may come, if life is spared, when 

 I shall give more fully all that I have learned. I have a vague 

 suspicion that our tender kinds of fruit, that blossom very early 

 in spring, may be improved in hardiness by close attention to 

 the form of the petals. Early in May of this year (I860) we 

 had here 5° of frost ; the weather was dry, and no injury 

 seemed to have been done to the blossoms of some Cherry 

 trees which I had under close observation, the germs were 

 green, and the petals uninjured. I observed, however, that the 

 extreme points of the pistils were killed from the petals being 

 thrown back, fully expanded, so as to leave them exposed. The 

 germs swelled, and I quite expected the fruit would come to 

 perfection. Instead of this, however, all that were marked 

 dropped oft shortly afterwards. I confess to being disappointed 

 in this, for I had calculated that complete fertilisation had 

 taken place, and that no injury from a slight frost could then 

 injure the fruit. 



While making observations on these blossoms my attention 

 was drawn to others, the petals of which were incurved, so as 

 to prefect the pistils ; this slight protection preserved them 

 from injury, and the fruit set healthily, and remained on the 

 trees, swelling gradually, and bidding fair to ripen properly. 

 On observing this I could not help theorising, and asking 

 myself the question, Would it not be possible, by careful at- 

 tention fur a scries of years, to originate varieties of fruits 

 from seed, giving blossoms with large incurved petals, so as 

 fully to protect the parts of fructification? The idea may be 

 in the clouds, but when one reflects on the licence which 

 Nature gives us in allowing us to assist her by our art, we ought 

 not to think it impossible. 



I have devoted many, many years to the raising of seedling 

 fruits — have, as a matter of course, met with many disappoint- 

 ments, but also much gratification ; there is, as I have found, 

 much pleasure in watcbiLg, from year to year, the chtraoter of 

 a seedling ; it is true that, after much promise, there is often 

 a failure, hut with me it has always acted as an incitement to 

 try again. At this moment I have hundreds of seedlings of 

 all kinds of fruits ; some from fertilised flowers, showing in- 

 teresting features of cross-breeding ; and many others raised 

 from old and esteemed varieties, with my old hope partly 

 fulfilled — that new varieties, with all the excellent qualities of 

 the old, may and will be originated and, as it were acclimatised, 

 like the Early Prolific Plum and its descendants, which are 

 neither more, nor less than hardy varieties of the Precoce de 

 Tours. It is, I fear, too true, that neither a Peach, Nectarine, 

 nor Apricot will ever be originated with blossoms fully capable 



of resisting our spring frosts, for even the common Sloe of our 

 hedges succumbs to them ; but it is quite probable that Peach 

 trees, bearing fruit equal in quality to our old favourite, the 

 Grosse Mignonne Peach, will be produced of a more hardy 

 nature than the old sort ; in fact, I have more than one 

 proof of this here ; to obtain this result, only the most robust- 

 growing seedlings from old varieties should be retained. Again, 

 much improvement will yet take place in raising early and late 

 varieties. I have reason to believe, from what I see daily, that 

 large and rich-flavoured Cherries may he on our tables from 

 early in June till the end of August ; Plums from July till far 

 in November; and Peaches, Nectarines, and Apricots in 

 orchard-houses, from early in July till late in autumn. I may 



| be accused of enthusiasm, but I look to the future for new 

 races of fruits, with qualities far superior to the old, and the 

 trees of so hardy a nature as to resist some of the unfavourable 



j tendencies of our climate. I have formed this opinion on the 

 solid basis of close observation during a lifetime devoted to 

 the culture of fruit trees in all stages of their growth. 



GOOSEBERRY SHOW. 



HELD AT THE ANGEL 1 



The following are 



their weights, and the 



Green 

 White 

 Bed 



Faithful Jameson , 



i reorge Plant 



Joseph Jones 



Thomas Pilkington 

 Thomas Lanceley 



Joseph Jones 



T. Lanceley . . Red . 

 J. Wynne .... Yellow 

 T. Pilkington . . Greeu 



S. Shone White 



I-'. Jameson . . Red . 

 Thomas Foster . Yell >w 

 T. Dobell, jun. 



G. Plant 



T. Lanceley . . 



J. Jones lad 



T. Lanceley . . Red 



S. Shone.. Red 



S. Shone Red 



T. Pilkington . . Red 

 .1. Wynne . . . 

 F. Jameson . 

 T. Lanceh y . 

 T. Pilkington . 

 J. Wynne . . . 

 F. Jameson 

 F. Jameson . 



J. Jones 



T. Pilkington . 

 T. Lanceley . 

 J. Wynne . . . 

 T. Lanceley . 

 P. Jameson . 

 T. Lanceley . 

 J. Jones 



grs 



18 



17 



7 



]';i mier Prize . . 

 Sto nds'Prize. 



ditto 



ditto 



ditto 



ditto 



ditto 



ditto 

 ditto 



19 

 36 

 26 



25 



Red 



Red 



Yellow 



Yellow 



Yellow 



Yellow 



YeUow 



Yellow 



Yellow 



Yellow 



Greeu 



Green 



Green 



Green 



Green 



NX. NOItlHWICH, CHESHIRE, JOLT! I.i'-lir. 

 the varieties of Gooseberries exhibited, 

 names of the exhibitors :— 



dwts. 



Red Seedling 17 



Yellow Seedling. . 13 



Green Seedling . . 16 



White Seedling . 



Twin's Stockwell 



London 



Beauty 



Cramp 21 



Green London . . 22 



Antagonist 19 



Clayton 19 



Oldham 19 



Qneen Victoria . . 16 

 King of Trumps. . 18 



London 



Slaughterman . 

 Eskendi r Bey. . . 

 Lord Liverpool . 

 Dan's Mistake . 



Speedwell 10 



Clayton 19 



23 



21 

 HI 

 19 

 19 



19 



T. Pilkington . 

 T. Lanceley . 

 T. Pilkington . 



J. Wynne . . . 

 J. Wynne . . . 

 T. Lanceley . 

 T. Pilkington . 

 T. PilkinHton . 

 J. Wynne . . . 

 T. Lanpeley . 

 J. Wynne . . . 



Green 

 Green 

 Green 

 White 

 White 

 White 

 White 

 White 

 White 

 White 

 White 



Beauty 

 Cramp 



Wasp 21 



Leveller 20 



Drill 20 



Tinker 20 



Candidate 19 



Criterion 19 



Unknown 18 



Stockwell 23 



Shiner 20 



Matchless 2(1 



Thumper 19 



Plunder 18 



Telegraph 18 



Thunder 18 



Greenock IS 



Elizabeth ...... 22 



Antagonist 22 



Hero of the Nile 19 



Mitre 19 



Seedling It) 



Snowdrop 19 



Freedom 19 



Careless 19 



9 







4 



23 



10 



10 



2 



16 



6 



12 



1 



4 



in 



16 



16 



15 



14 



12 



6 



6 



8 



12 



3 



4 



12 



2 



9 



9 



10 



20 



12 



is 

 12 

 9 

 5 

 2 

 



Strawberry SeoRT. — It may be an interesting addition to 

 the fact communicated by Dr. H. Thomas, of Chester (page 82), 

 to state that in June last I gathered from the open ground a 

 ripe Eleanor Strawberry of perfect form, from the side of which 

 a minute but perfect plant had grown, apparently emitted from 

 the skin of the berry. I deposited this curiosity on the dining 

 table, intending to examine it more closely, aud then to plant 

 the whole, and watch the ultimate development of my little 

 foundling. But alas ! our servant, on serving breakfast, inad- 



